The Livingston enterprise. [volume] (Livingston, Mont.) 1883-1914, 1887-11-12

dow at this moment fell upon the cor
ner of the death machine and in
a slight degree relieved its sombre hue.
The chief bailiff began at 11:10 calling
out the names of persons summoned as
jurors and bringing them forward to
the row of little stools directly in front
of the gallows. No other sounds were
heard in the long, high corridor but the
solemn, monotonous voice of the bal
lifts and the rustling of the jurors as
they tip-toed forward through the
crowd. Parsons was given a cup OF
coffee a few minutes before the march
to the scaffold was begun, and at 11:12
they began eating their final lunch. The
sheriff had finished reading the death
warrants of Spies, Engel, Fischer and
Parsons, and at II :46 the four men were
Immediately put in their shrouds. It
lacked just seven and one-half minutes
of noon when single shrouded figure,
above which was a face of yelloWish
pallor-the face of August Spies-pass-
ed the first post of the gallows. The
gaping crowd, ten feet below, half rose
involuntarily from their chairs at the
first glimpse of the apparition advanc-
ing across the scaffold. Spies looked
calm and glanced at the reporters with
trace of his old-time cynical smile.
He walked firmly over the drops, guild
ed by the grasps of the deputy to the
furtherest edge of the gallows. Follow
ing close came Fischer, whose counte-
nance had peculiar glisten, totally un-
like the ashiness of Engel's heavy fea-
lures, and in strange contrast with the
dead lack of color in the pinched Inca
ments of Parsons. The once jaunty,
vivacious Texan came last, withered
old man. He had aged twenty years
since the day and hour, scarcely twelve
months before, when he tripped lightly
into court before Judge Gary and flip
PANTY declared that he was ready to be
tried at once for his life. The minute
his feet touched the scaffold Parsons
seemed to completely lose his identity
and to feel that his spirit was no longer
part of his body. He had brought HIM
self to an ecstacy of glorification.
The only American, he seemed to real
ize that he must die in manner to i'm
press, if possible, upon all future gen.
erations the thought that he was mar
tyr. No tragedian that has paced the
stage in America ever made more
marvellous presentation of his self-chos-
en- part. It was perfect in every detail;
in the upward turn of his eyes, his dis
tant, far-away look, and, above all, the
attitude of apparent complete reslgna-
tion that every fold of the awkward
shroud only served to make more dis
tinct, was by far the most striking fea-
ture of the entire gallows picture. The
squat form of Engel alongside, with a
stupid, wide-jawed face, made hideous
contrast to Parsons assumption of a
halo of a martyr. Fischer was head
and shoulders taller than the other
three, making his only occasional look
of too evident bravado more noticeable
than might otherwise be, and a sorry
disadvantage compared with the steady
GOODNESS of Spies. The latter's exhibit
bition of quiet, thorough nerve far sur
passed as wonder the demeanOr of any
of his comrades. Four burly deputies
standing to the rear of the four con-
demned men, began without delay to
adjust the ropes, Spies moose being the
one first placed. He didn't appear to re-
gard it. as of any more consequence
than new linen collar. The knot was
slipped down the cord close to his neck.
Spies did not show tremOr, but when
the same process was being carried out
with Fischer he turned and quietly
whispered to the bailiff some sugges-
ton concerning the rope. Fischer's oc-
casional ardor was quite noticeably less
ened when he felt the hempen strand,
and Engel bit his under lip hard when
his time came. Just then DR.. Murphy,
a young physician standing back OF
Engel, whisperingly cracked a joke at
Engel's ear Incredible as it may seem
the low-browed anarchist laughed out
right with the rope around his neck,
and while another was being fastened
on Parsons by his side, but the gro
tesque laugh stopped in a single in
slant, and Parsons, merely as a saint,
cast his eyes upward at the dangling
line above his head. Before the four
anarchists had any inkling of what
was to be done the white caps were
deftly slipped upon their heads and
drawn quickly down to their necks,
shutting off the view Of each as COM
pletely and with less warning than
does the camera cloth Of the photog-
rapher. August Spies was the first OF
the four doomed men to make use OF
his wits while he could, in tone
of the most intense bitterness Of spirit
he. the man who wrote the famous re-
venge circular, hissed out between his
tightly clenched teeth: "There will
come a time when our silence will be
more powerful than the voices they
are strangling to DEATH The last
syllable of Spies concluding words
with suppressed passion, had not reach
ed an end when Engel, raising his
voice loudly. cried: "Hurrah for an